Marked
by sofreakedout
Summary: The past and the present will collide. Will there be a future left for them?
1. Chapter 1

**The Mortal Instruments: Marked – Chapter One: Burned and Broken**

**July 14**

Kat cursed in Latin. The swearing kind, not the killing one. She'd spotted a demon, and it wasn't supposed to be there.

She fumbled for her phone in her pocket and hastily dialed Isabelle's number. "Izzy! Demon spotting here at- Wait, I see you," she said breathlessly and raised her hand to catch the group's attention. She pointed to the alley on her right. She ducked into it with the others right behind her.

Drawing her dagger, she stalked silently and let Isabelle and Alec move forward. It was always their position- Isabelle and Alec would cover the front, Kat would keep on look-out and stay in the middle, and Jace would keep defense on the back side.

They stalker slowly. The demon had disappeared again. Isabelle was about to tell the others that there was nothing to be found when her necklace pulsed.

The demon appeared three feet in front of them. It had a green, lizard-like body that ended in a narrow glittering tail. In closer inspection, they were actually the sharp edges of bones. Where its eyes should have been were teeth, and it had another set of mouth below that. It had a forked stinger tongue. It was large. It was frightening.

Isabelle yelped and lashed her whip. It hit the demon on its left side, but not fatally. Still, it cried out in pain. Jace raised his sword and sliced through one of the demon's arms. It hissed and attacked with the group by swinging its tail.

"Scatter!" Alec screamed, and Kat dived left. She hid behind a dumpster while the Ahiab demon- she remembered what it was called- sensed around for them.

Isabelle, standing on a wooden crate, lashed her whipped again and the demon turned toward her. Alec, who climbed up a fire escape, aimed his bow and arrow and fired. It hit the demon's hide and bounced off, leaving only a light wound.

"Aim for the mouth!" Kat remembered and instantly clamped her hand over her mouth. But it was too late. The demon faced her, tongue out oozing poison.

Jace slashed his sword again, but the wound it inflicted was not enough for the Ahiab demon to turn its attention on him. He was intent on Kat. She raised her dagger as the demon opened its mouth to scream when Isabelle's whip lashed out once again. She threw it with perfect aim, effectively slicing off its tongue and impaling the dagger on the back of its throat. The demon choked, leaving its mouth undefended. Alec aimed and shot straight into its mouth, thus finally killing the demon.

It imploded into a pile of ashes and ichor.

"Damn," Kat muttered. "I really liked that dagger."

"We'll get you another one," Jace said with a tight smile. He wiped his sword with a piece of cloth that came away smoking when he was finished.

"You guys hungry? Let's get some take-out from Taki's," Isabelle said. Typical day for the group.

"Katherine, you have a letter," Hodge said when they were seated at the dinner table. Kat reached for it and looked at the back. Hastily, she opened the letter.

Dear Ms. Collins,

We, the people at the Preston Gallery, have heard many wonderful things about your talent in photography. We would like to make this as brief as possible: We would like to invite you to come join us in a month-long summer program at The Gallery, located at London, as you well know. It would serve as not only training, but job experience.

Lodging and travel fee will obviously be provided. The only requirements are your presence, and of course, a camera.

The letter spoke more about the schedules and perks of the program.

We hope you'd consider coming. It would definitely open up many wonderful opportunities for you.

Sincerely,

Michael Preston, President

"By the Angel," she mumbled, reading the letter again.

"What?" Jace asked, muffled by the food in his mouth. "What?" he asked again when she didn't reply, still dazed by the opportunities ahead her. "God," he muttered, and snatched the letter from her.

_That_ snapped her out. "Hey!" she complained, but Jace had already finished reading and had passed the letter to Alec and Isabelle.

"You're _not going,_" Jace said, glaring at her.

"I haven't even decided yet!" Kat exclaimed, but that wasn't true. She had been dreaming of being invited at the workshop since she was young.

"It's in London, Jace," Hodge said, coming to the brunette's defense. "I'm sure the Enclave will take her in for a while."

"And The Prestons are _really _famous and prestige, so I doubt they'll turn out as demons," Isabelle said.

"And people who 'graduate' from their training become, like, internationally famous," Alec said.

"See? She'll be famous! Shadowhunters can't be known in the mundie world," Jace said smugly.

"Face it, Jonathan, I'm a mundane!" Kat exclaimed. "It's not _your _decision to make!" She stood up and slammed her fork on the table, where it stuck and vibrated. She stalked off.

The whole table glared at Jace.

"What?" he asked, taking another bite of his paella from Taki's.

"Men are hopeless," Isabelle muttered, and went away to find her sister.

After a few minutes of walking around the institute, Isabelle finally found Kat on the roof, sobbing, with her camera in her arms.

"Hey," Isabelle said as she slid down next to Kat on the roof. "Jace is an idiot."

"I know," Kat muttered.

"We're so proud of you."

"I know."

Isabelle sighed. "I don't want you to leave, but I want you to go."

"Doesn't make sense, Iz," Kat said, turning her head to the older girl. Isabelle wrapped an arm around her adoptive sister.

"I could go with you, if you want. I'm sure there would be plenty of cute boys there," Isabelle said with a wink. Kat laughed lightly.

"No thanks. I think I need a vacation from the Shadowhunting world. You know, interact and associate with fellow mundies," Kat said grimly.

"Well, mundie or not, you're still my sister," Isabelle said, hugging Kat tighter. "Even if you end up being a werewolf, for all we care." Kat's smile met her eyes this time.

"But Kat, there's one more thing," Isabelle said. Kat raised her eyebrow. "You sounded frantic on the phone today. It's like you haven't done this a million time already. What happened back there?"

Leave it to Isabelle to be so observant.

"Just worried," Kat lied, turning her camera around in her hands. "Ahiab demons aren't supposed to be out just like that. They rape their victims before they kill them, Iz. I was worried." Kat looked up to see if Isabelle bought her story, and it was clear she didn't, but she let it go- for now.

But how could Kat tell her about her dreams? If they were even dreams; they were more like haunting nightmares. No, she would keep that burden to herself.

That night, as she lay in bed, she removed her thick bracelet from her left wrist. Indeed, it was there: a bright red mark encircling her wrist, and a small white star atop the veins below the palm of her hand.

The mark of the Angel, where he touched her in the dream.


	2. Chapter 2

**The Mortal Instruments: Marked – Chapter Two: Ties and Trees**

**August 7**

Kat admired the pictures pasted on her wall. They had been shot and printed by yours truly, and it was one of the few things she was proud of. The summer program really was worth coming all the way to London for.

She turned around as she heard her phone buzz. A text message just came in.

_It'sDrewBaby: We still up for later? :)_

Kat smiled and quickly replied.

_KittyKat: Yep. Just let me finish posting my pics on the wall. c:_

A reply came soon after.

_It'sDrewBaby: Sure. I'll come to your flat in a few. :)_

Kat laughed to herself. Andrew James Lovelace was one of the few residents of the London Institute she had met during her stay at the bustling city. Andrew was all fair hair, and light blue eyes in comparison to her brown hair and gray-green eyes. He just turned eighteen a week ago, and had insisted on Kat coming with him, though she barely knew him at that time. The first part of the celebration were placing of runes of maturity, indicating that the Shadowhunter was considered an adult. Kat didn't attend that; she was a mundane. The second part was a party, and Kat attended that. When it ended, Kat had danced with Drew. Slow-dance, not the grinding stuff you see at clubs, because he was such a gentleman. Kat adored him for that.

There was a knock on her door just as she finished tacking the last of them. She smiled and opened the door.

"Hi," he said, grinning.

"Hi," she replied, blushing, and stepped aside. He admired the wall.

"You know, when you said you were 'posting your pics on the wall,' I legitimately thought that it was your Facebook page," he said in his soft accented voice. Kat laughed.

"You know I don't have that. I don't have friends to add," she said, grinning. "Though if I did, it would seriously be filled with photos."

"No doubt about that," he said as he hooked her arm in his and led her out of the apartment. The Gallery had been honest to the last dot in their letter. The flat they provided was more than enough for her, and the roommate she shared it with almost never bothered her too badly.

"Where are we going?" she asked him as they climbed down the stairs.

He turned to her and grinned. "It's a surprise."

When they reached the street, a carriage was waiting for them. "I thought you'd want to see London as Shadowhunters did before," he whispered.

"Why, indeed I do, Mr. Lovelace," she said in a faked British accent and curtsied. He bowed and helped her up the carriage.

"By the way, you look _amazing _tonight, Miss Collins," he said with a wink. Kat couldn't help but like him more with every second that passed.

"And that, my lady, is the river Thames. It has been said that during the time of our ancestors, it had been filthy as, well, how dare I even think of saying that word in front of a lady. My sincere apologies, Miss Collins," Drew had said. Throughout the course of the night, their hands had crept nearer each other, and now they were finally touching.

_The old English courting is nice and all, _Kat thought, _just a little too conservative._

They had been dropped off at the park, where a dinner for two were set.

"The food is _amazing_, Drew," she said as she took another bite of the chicken. She was sure at this point that he used a warlock to infuse all her favorite flavors into it.

He ducked his head, flushing. "All for an amazing girl."

"Prepared by an amazing guy," she said.

"I know it's too soon, Kat, but I know- I swear from the moment I saw you I was captivated. And I swear, if I ever get a chance with you, I won't ever let you go. They said if you saw the person that was meant for you, time stops, then speeds up when you're with them. That's what I felt. I felt that the song was too short, that the night should have never ended, and at the same time, we were in this little forever." He reached for her hand across the table. "I really like you, Miss Collins."

Kat smiled brightly and warmly. "I like you too, Mr. Lovelace." Drew grinned.

Trust everything to go disastrous just as it became perfect.

Drew had been picking up Kat to and from the gallery, ever since they met, actually, but everything seemed sweeter when you knew that love _was_ in the air.

That is, until one day when he was sent to an assignment and was unable to pick her up.

He was all apologies, but Kat kept on insisting it was okay, and indeed it was. She had always been taught to be independent and strong ever since she could remember, meaning from when she was twelve onward.

Kat was walking home when she felt a pain on her wrist. Brushing her bracelets aside, she saw the star burning brightly. Kat felt her heartbeat quicken. She hadn't had an attack or dream like this ever since she left New York. She thought the horror would be left there, but it seemed to have followed her to London. She closed her eyes, and sure enough, the scene had changed when she opened them.

She was wearing a dress of white and silver, with her hair elaborately done, and probably her make-up, too. She was standing in the middle of a pool- no, a lake- with a sword in one hand and a cup in the other. On her back, she felt great wings, and when she turned, they had swirling designs of gold and silver. She thought this scene was familiar, only she couldn't put her finger on it.

Then it hit her, literally hit her.

A wave of water rose up and slammed against her, and she was no longer a messenger, but a drowning girl.

She couldn't see and she couldn't breathe. She had no means of knowing which way was up and which was down. She struggled for a while, lungs burning with icy water, until it glowed. Her white star mark burned as bright as a real star and dissolved the water around her.

"_So you see, I give you a great blessing, though you are also burdened with a curse. This will either make or break the fate of humankind, including Shadowhunters and Downworlders alike. You will be asked to choose, and choose you must. But choose wisely. And search for your roots," _the great voice said. She didn't have two minutes to comprehend when she was jostled back into her own body. Checking her watch, not a second had passed since she was out.

She turned around and headed for the Institute.

"Hey," Drew said with his usual smile as he turned around and spotted her. Kat tried as hard as she could to put on a smile and remove all traces of anxiousness.

"Hi. Just got a message from home. Asked if I could borrow a few records here of the old Shadowhunter families. Apparently, the Lightwoods had stayed here before," she said.

"Sure! None of them would mind. I'll ask later to be sure," Drew said and led her to the library. He continued to take his smoldering gear off.

"What did you have today?" Kat asked as she flipped through the stack of yellowing paper Drew had pointed to. _Fairchild, Branwell, Herondale, Carstairs…_

"Demon attacks at mundane alleys. They usually went for the drunk or the homeless but the most recent attacks included young girls and women."

"Hmm," she said. "Sounds like the demon that had attacked us a month ago. Ahiab demon, bad rapist." _Lovelace, Lightwoods…_

"Right. And we're worried about how frequent the attacks are becoming."

"Did you tell the Clave yet?" Kat asked as she looked up from the pile.

"I think that's what they're doing now," Drew replied. He walked over to her and presented a small brown leather book. "This came with the pile, by the way. I think it's a diary from the late 19th century. It's Sophie Collins' diary, and I thought you might want it." Kat took the book and smiled.

"This is very helpful. Thank you," she said with a smile. "Mind helping me photocopy the other stuff?"

Drew smiled back and took her hand. Kat stared at the piles of paper once again, and back to the diary in her hands.

_Sophie Collins, why do I know you?_


End file.
